On the pulse

At the RCN Congress in Liverpool this week, some of the most pressing issues facing the nursing profession were on the agenda. In particular, two stories covered by Nursing Times highlighted the need for greater awareness of the value of some nursing roles.

Shock rise in HIV cases among gay men

More than 7,000 new cases of HIV were diagnosed last year, including the second highest ever number of new diagnoses among gay men, figures from the Health Protection Agency have revealed.

2,830 of the estimated 7,370 new HIV cases were diagnosed among gay men, marginally lower than 2007’s high of 3,050, but still the second highest since recording began.

The HPA said it was too early to say whether the number of new HIV cases among gay men had peaked, or whether there was a delay in reporting.

An emphasis on the importance of HIV testing among high risk groups may have contributed to the current high figures among gay men, the HPA said.

Although diagnoses of HIV through heterosexual sex decreased last year, this is mainly due to a fall in cases contracted abroad, and the number of new HIV diagnoses infected heterosexually in the UK rose from 500 in 2007, to an estimated 1,090 last year.

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The Daily Telegraph boldly and erroneously reported that “women really do have a ‘gaydar’ which allows them to tell someone’s sexuality ‘in the blink of an eye’”, while the Sun informs us that “most people have a ‘gaydar’”.

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